


Broken Voice

by NerdGemini



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Fake/Pretend Relationship, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Singer!Killua, selective mutism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-24
Updated: 2016-02-24
Packaged: 2018-05-22 22:20:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6095804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NerdGemini/pseuds/NerdGemini
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Based off of a prompt I was given by a friend. Killua has selective mutism but is forced to preform in order to provide his family with a fortune. When he meets Gon things start to change, his mother wants them to be in a fake relationship in order to attract fans with rumors. However what Killua's family doesn't know is that his new relationship with Gon may just be the thing that will help him recover.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Broken Voice

**Author's Note:**

> My first work that I'm posting on AO3 and that I've made for this fandom in general. I'm also not used to modern times AUs so this is mostly experimental.

As the final note ended, the crowd around me erupted into cheers and applause. I opened my eyes and soaked everything in before taking a bow, thanking the crowd as I headed backstage where my younger sister, Alluka was waiting. She grinned and looked up at me with amazement. “That was amazing big brother! Your voice is so pretty!” I smiled slightly and gave her a small nod of gratitude, she was the only one allowed to hear my voice outside of performances nowadays. My mother had made it a strict rule that I couldn’t talk unless I was singing, the few times I questioned it she lashed out violently. My older brother had trained me into silence, constantly beating into my head that I couldn't talk to anyone because it would lead to heartbreak, I never stayed in one place more than a week.

Seeing various fans communicating with one another from behind the curtain always made me curious to see what it was like to have friends. But I feared disobeying my family. They never gave out lectures, only scars.

“Kiiiilli.” My body tensed at the tone. Mother was going to manipulate me into doing something if I liked it or not, I just knew it.

I quickly spun on my heel, giving the bandaged woman my attention, wanting to get the mostly one sided conversation over with as soon as possible.

“Your fan count has gone down.” She took a step closer to me, my eyes going wide. Had it really gone down? I didn’t notice any difference during the performance .

I put my finger up and spun it around, Mother growing angrier at that response. “No it is not this area. You were doing just fine before we came here!” A wad of cash was shoved into my chest harshly and I flinched back instinctively. “Go buy yourself a new outfit for tomorrow's performance. You better be back before dark or you’ll be punished.”

I nodded quickly and darted to my trailer, placing the money on my bag before changing out of my current flashy outfit and into a simple black hoodie with a blue undershirt and jeans. I messed up my hair before pulling up the hood to hide my albinism the best I could. I would be recognized immediately without it. I flipped through the cash, sighing softly. It was enough to get an outfit but just that. Maybe I could get some food if I find a nice outfit for cheap, which was unlikely in this area. But I would not go against Mother and lose the small amount of money I get.

Poking my head out of my trailer I made sure no one was around before hurrying out of the park. I scanned the windows of various shops along the crowded streets, hoping to find one with good clothing. I was picky about my fashion sense, though most of my clothes did involve cooler colors, especially dark blue. I wasn’t just going to wear anything. As soon as I saw a store that perked my interests I headed in, instantly heading to the more fancier clothes. I got some strange looks that were short lived as soon as they realized I was actually shopping.

It took almost an hour but I finally found an outfit I liked. I paid for everything and counted how much money I had left. As I had predicted I didn’t have enough for a meal. I sighed and took my bag from the cashier deciding to wander the streets to kill time. I wanted to stay away from my family as long as possible, having two hours before I had to return to the park. I took in the sights around me solemnly, knowing I couldn’t stay here for much longer. Tomorrow’s performance would be the first and last time people in this town would hear my voice. I wish I was allowed to stay.

I was jolted from my thoughts as I shoved down to the ground, wincing in pain. I got to my feet only to be pushed back down again, the pain only getting worse. One of my wounds had definitely reopened.

“We’re not letting you get away with running into me without a proper apology now kid you could have ruined my clothes!” I looked up at the three men, mouth opening and closing though no sound came out, I couldn’t bring myself to say anything and instead bowed my head as a form of apology. However, this only made the men looming over me get more furious. “What? Nothing to say for yourself? Well we oughta teach you a lesson about manners now shall we!”

“Leave him alone! We all saw you shove him down in the first place!” I opened my eyes to find a boy about my age shielding me from the men. I took my chance to stand up and take a few steps back, not wanting to get caught in a fight

“Why don’t you let the adults handle this kid, go run back home to mommy!”

I could tell that struck a nerve with the boy from the way he tensed up. He rolled up his sleeves and out of pure instinct I closed my eyes. The sound of a beating made me tremble in fear where I stood, unable to bring myself to move. Everything was silent as soon as it started, only the sound of the wind was to be heard. I felt a soft hand on my shoulder and spun around to come face to face with the boy again.

“Sorry about that. Well at least they won’t bother you anymore!” The boy grinned. “I’m Gon, what’s your name?”

I opened my mouth but my voice remained locked up. Gon seemed to take note because before I could react he walked over to the curb, slipping his bookbag off to search through it. I took a seat next to him and was handed a notepad and pen.

“Here, use this.”

‘I’m mute.’ I handed the paper back to Gon whose eyes widened slightly before he quickly chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

“Sorry, I didn’t know.” He said with a sheepish smile plastered on his face.

I smiled a bit, peacefully closing my eyes to show I forgave the other. It wasn’t like he could tell that from looks alone anyways.

The raven haired boy stayed quiet for a moment, as if he was unsure what to say. Though he suddenly bolted up, a confident tone to his voice “Oh right! Your name!”

I took the notepad back and debated writing down a fake name for a moment, but for some reason I couldn’t bring myself to do so. I handed Gon the hastily scribbled message ‘I'm Killua.’

“Nice to meet you Killua! That's how you say it right?” Once I nodded he continued. “What brings you to this town? Not many people my age like to visit an old fishing port.”

‘Family matters. They take me traveling to weird places a lot.’ That wasn’t the full truth but it wasn’t a lie either. Besides, I wasn’t about to give my full life’s story to some stranger knowing my family could come around the corner any moment. It was bad enough I still was talking to this guy.

Gon stared at me with amber eyes filled with wonder. “So you must have seen a lot of places in the world right? That’s so cool Killua!”

I felt my cheeks heat up in embarrassment and shook my head, snatching the notepad back with force this time. ‘It’s not really that great.’

“Yeah it is!”  He chuckled before speaking again. “Hey are you hungry? I know a great restaurant with the best food. I’ll pay too!” Before I could write anything down my stomach betrayed me, giving Gon a clear answer. He got to his feet, taking my hand in his own. “Well, let’s go!.”

I didn’t object to him pulling me down the street, even though I was going to get in even more trouble once I got home. The realization never even once crossed my mind that night.  My mind was just filled with the stupid jokes me and Gon made, borderline disturbing the restaurant at some points. This was something I could get used to, but every time I smiled my brother’s voice rang through my head, making it short lived and bittersweet. _I wasn’t allowed to have friends, I would have to leave them or they would leave me._


End file.
